Western Thailand

we have been busy on our adventure these past few days. We got an early start yesterday as we had to catch a local train to the Mae Klong market. If you have not seen my Facebook posting about the market you can find a video about it on YouTube.

A nice local traveling with his wife a 3 yr old daughter gave us on of their seats so we could be near the window. As we approached the market he and his famy mov d into the aisle so both Barry and I could lean out the window and watch the train approach the market.   The train runs behind two buildings. The market is also there. As the train approaches the merchants roll back their awnings and their tables to make way for the train. As the train passes through tbe merchants it everything back in place as if nothing ever happened.  There were tons of tourists there and it was fun taking u tired of the tourists standing in the market while we were in the train.

After lunch at another wonderful local restaurant we headed to the memorial cemetery where men from WWII who had died during the making of the Burma-Thailand train were buried.

At long last we arrived at our lodgings  the Hin Tock River Camp is a permanently tented facility. It is a step up from our tent last summer in the Serengetti as it has a/c.  The bathroom however is opened in the back. Roof but on a tall bamboo wall for privacy. Everyone agreed this morning that sleeping outdoors was the best nights sleep.

The camp itself is on the grounds of a former POW camp. We walked from the camp into the village to a local home for dinner.  Flashlights were a must as we are dee in the jungle where there is no street lighting.

Today we got another early start and headed to Hellfire pass where the POWs and many Asian s were conscripted to build the Burma to Thailand railway.  It was incredible to see how mountains were carved by hand to make way for the train tracks to be laid. After a quarter mile walk through the ass we went into the war memorial museum.

From there we left our bus and drove by pickup truck to the Kwai River for a leisurely one hour ride in a long boat down the river. The River is low this time of year as it is dry season. Along the way we past a number of resorts that float on the river.

Tonite we have dinner at the camp. In the morning we head back to Bangkok for our flight to Chang Mai in northern Thailand near the Myanmar border.